Ep. 92: Bound by Donna Jo Napoli

Of Slippers and Spindles - Fairy Tale Retellings and Adaptations in Books, Film, and Theatre

"'My feet are not bound.' 'I noticed,' said the prince."

For our fourth retelling in our second Cinderella Month, Drew and Cassie are taking a look at Bound by Donna Jo Napoli. This 2004 book specifically retells the ancient Chinese legend of Ye Xian, reimagining the main character as Xing Xing, a young woman whose circumstances have left her orphaned and living with her cruel and jealous stepmother and half-sister, Wei Ping. We discuss the appropriateness of Napoli as a white author telling this story, the lack of development for the prince, the complicated family relationships, the way Napoli uses foot binding to connect to the Cinderella story, the inclusion of the toe removal from the Grimm version of the story, Stepmother as a clever villain, and more!
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Music: Through The Woods by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com